Poolside, research for Khaos Rules, coffee, Atkins Shake, Police, do not cross lanyard to keep peeps away. What could be better?

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Oops Sorry. I couldn’t figure out how to get my pic under the RW banner.

How often do you write?

I write every single day for at least 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or more hours. That would include social media, reading and responding to emails from my five loops and professional organizations, researching takes me up to at least 14 hours a day and plotting in my notebook. Oh, I almost forgot blogging, hosting writers on my blog and doing guest appearances as I’m sure I’ll be doing more of as Gemini gets closer to release. Even laying down in bed my characters have taken over and given me scenes. So my writing, has all consumed me 24 seven.

P.S. I had to come back in to add this. I do not have another job. Gave up my holistic healing practice, doing my other biz partially, and gave up my volunteering down here, I don’t have children in the house and no grandkids that beckon to me to babysit (unfortunately). My hubby is very independent and does not demand dinner on the table at a certain hour if at all. Therefore, I can do what I want, when I want. So since writing is my passion now, I’m a million percent in it.

So that should explain, how I can spend so much time writing. Oh! And we’re not from the travelers. Oh! And I gave up my day Mahjong group.

Do you think it’s important to your craft to write as much as you can as often as you can?

Yes, absolutely. Writing takes practice. The skills can definitely be learned. It will take me less time to complete the first draft of my current WIP, Khaos Rules, than it did to write Gemini. That’s mainly because my skills have been honed. I won’t make the same mistakes as I did in grammar, sentence structure, pov issues. Everything that I learned previously is going to be translated into my new work in progress. That includes all of the advice I have been given that I feel I resonate with. A major point is to be open minded as to what your critique partners and rejection letters have indicated as not working. If the same issue is repeatedly pointed out, don’t stand on your laurels. Fix it.

What’s your opinion of the saying ‘if you don’t write every day you’re not a writer.’

To me this explains the difference between a writer in the business of writing, and a hobbyist. A hobbyist would not be on the journey to publication and therefore not take it as seriously as someone in the business. I am in the business of writing. I am in the writing industry. To me it’s going to a job. But this particular job I work at 24 seven. I don’t leave the office and close the door. I believe if someone wants to take the journey towards publication writing is something that must be done every day. “If you publish one book and readers love it and it’s well received, your readers will not want to wait another three years to get one of your books. They want them pretty quickly. An author can become so five minutes ago if they don’t repeatedly produce within a reasonable amount of time.” I actually borrowed those last three sentences from former President of SSRA, Loretta Roger, whom I consider to be one of my mentors and she’s a woman whom I totally respect.

Yes. I write every day. Poolside or in the house. I’ll write on my iPad Air using Google QuickOffice. Then I’ll email it to myself and uploaded into my master document on my big laptop. So if the DEA or FBI ever need to track me down because of my questionable repeated research I do on their web sites, they can find me any day, as in the above pic.

If I get ideas during the day, I’ll write them on my notepad on my iPhone. Then I can either retype it or again email it to myself and print it out. I did that a lot with Gemini. And I am doing a lot with Khaos Rules.

Ronnie, this was great. I’m with you on this being a job. I’m not sure how people who have outside the home employment for 40 hours per week do it and write. I’ll tell you my respect for those special people is huge.

Yes Sarah, I agree. I don’t work now, gave up my volunteering down here, have no children in the house and a very independent husband who does not demand dinner on the table at a certain time. I’m very lucky, that for the most part, I can do what I want, when I want.

There is definitely a difference between a professional and a hobby writer. I’ve found it’s difficult to convince the minions (haha – like I have minions) of my professional status until they see a published book. So I keep at and looks like you have too and it’s paid off!

Absolutely Fiona. People see me at the pool or I meet them shopping. I get, ‘are you still writing?” It’s like, ‘yeah, and I’m in contract.’ So fun, to tell them I’m successful cause I worked my butt off, or should I say, I glued my butt to the chair?

Thanks for the compliment, Ronnie. I remember my beginning days of entering the writing business as a complete newbie. Sadly, very few who had ‘made it’ in the business were willing to mentor the pre-pub’d writers. As the theme song on the TV show, Monk, says: “It’s a jungle out there.” I’m always happy to help those, like yourself, who are serious about pursuing a career as an author. Nice article BTW.

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